| Brief | For Issue #3, we're opening the story of Cerria Cortez - one of the newest characters entering the world of Back of the Yards - to collaboration. A military veteran, young Chicago police officer and Nick Zomski's new partner, Cortez carries her own history into the neighborhood. We're inviting you to help us explore the people, places and experiences that shaped her, including the tattoos she carries and the stories behind them. |
|---|---|
| Core Personality Traits & Values | Cerria is fiercely independent, emotionally guarded, highly intelligent, and driven by a deep belief that truth, justice, and personal determination can still challenge broken systems |
| Archetype | TBD - [Eric to Determine] |
| Motto | TBD - [Eric to Develop] |
| Collaboration Background | Cerria Cortez was developed by Eric Nyamor in collaboration with Tony Maldonado, Len Kody, and Jimmy Briseno as part of the Issue #3 pre-production workshops during the summer of 2026. |
| Debut | Issue #3 of the Back of the Yards comic series |
Cerria’s childhood was shaped by instability, emotional hypervigilance, and survival. Raised in a working-class Latino household on Chicago’s West Side, she grew up under the shadow of an abusive and alcoholic father whose violence left lasting emotional scars on the family. From an early age, Cerria learned how to read danger before it fully arrived — developing the instincts, emotional awareness, and guarded independence that would later define her as both an officer and investigator.
The defining trauma of her childhood occurred during a violent altercation inside the family home. As her father assaulted her mother and suddenly turned toward Cerria, her older sister intervened and fatally shot him in what she believed was an act of protection. Despite the circumstances, her sister was later charged with manslaughter, leaving Cerria with a permanent distrust of simplistic narratives and institutional judgments. The experience became foundational to her worldview: systems often fail the people trapped inside them.
In the years that followed, Cerria formed a close relationship with a man known in the neighborhood simply as “Peaches,” who ran a neighborhood youth program at the time. Unlike many authority figures in her life, Peaches never treated her as broken or fragile. Instead, he recognized both her intelligence and the emotional armor she had already begun building around herself. Over time, he became one of the few stable and grounding influences in her life.
As Cerria grew older, she became increasingly determined to build structure, discipline, and independence for herself. Military service offered her an opportunity to escape instability, challenge herself, and gain control over a life that had often felt shaped by chaos and reaction.
After returning to Chicago, Cerria chose to enter law enforcement with the belief that meaningful change was still possible within institutions — even flawed ones. Unlike many older officers who had grown cynical or detached, she approached policing with urgency and purpose.
At the same time, Cerria’s long-term aspirations extend beyond policing itself. While serving as an officer, she also pursues law school part-time with the ultimate goal of becoming a criminal defense attorney. To Cerria, the law represents another battlefield in the broader struggle for truth and justice.
In present-day Back of the Yards, Cerria’s investigative instincts begin pulling her toward patterns others have long stopped questioning. Alongside her older partner Nick Zomski, she investigates escalating violence, disappearances, and growing instability spreading throughout the neighborhood. While Zomski approaches the streets with the caution and quiet instincts of someone who has spent decades surviving Chicago’s corruption and political realities, Cerria pushes relentlessly for answers — creating a partnership shaped by tension, mutual respect, and fundamentally different views of the system they serve.
As the two officers dig deeper, Cerria begins uncovering buried police reports, forgotten cases, and inconsistencies that suggest the neighborhood has been shaped by hidden forces operating beneath the surface for decades. The more she uncovers, the more she begins to question exactly how much Zomski knows — and whether his connection to the neighborhood’s past runs far deeper than he has allowed her to see.
Unlike many around her, Cerria refuses to look away. Her search for truth becomes more than an investigation — it becomes a confrontation with the very structures that shape Back of the Yards itself: policing, organized crime, politics, fear, and the lingering weight of buried secrets.
Now that you have a sense of who Cerria Cortez is and the broader storyline surrounding his character, we invite you to collaborate with us in helping shape his continued development. Your responses to these collaborative prompts will be regularly reviewed by Cortez’ creator, Eric Nyamor, together with our Studio Board.
Selected ideas and contributions may ultimately become part of Cortez’ evolving core canon moving forward, with Creative Commons credit attributed to you as a contributor. Additional submissions may also be selected for expanded development and discussion through our virtual collaboration workshops.
Beyond the Badge — Help Us Develop Cerria Cortez
Cerria Cortez is a military veteran, Chicago police officer, and aspiring attorney whose experiences have shaped her determination to pursue truth and justice.
But there's more to Cerria than her uniform, her professional ambitions, or the difficult experiences that brought her here.
What is she like when she's off duty? What personal habits, interests, and relationships reveal the person behind the badge? And how have her years in the military influenced the woman she's become?
That's where you come in.
As we develop Issue #3 of Back of the Yards, we're inviting you to help fill in the details of Cerria's everyday life and military experiences - from her personal style and tattoos to the memories and relationships that continue to shape her.
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book. iPad/iPhone users, submit images from FILES (NOT from Photo Library).
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
UPLOAD YOUR IMAGES BELOW
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
UPLOAD YOUR IMAGES BELOW
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
UPLOAD YOUR IMAGES BELOW
Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
UPLOAD YOUR IMAGES BELOW
Collaborate with professional artists by contributing some artwork of your own! Some special pieces may be selected to appear in the Back of the Yards comic book.
UPLOAD YOUR IMAGES BELOW
