Animated

by Kim Fielding

World War II veteran Frank Porter was permanently injured during his service as a paratrooper. But that was eight years ago, and now his bum foot is only a small part of his struggle. He never found success in the field of fine art and instead works long hours as an animator in an LA film studio. Fearful about revealing his true self, even to his friends, he’ll be enduring another Christmas alone—except for his two pet frogs.

When his boss orders him to spend a day observing handsome matinee idol Carver Reed—the voice behind the character that Frank is animating—Frank figures he’s in for an embarrassing ordeal. The meeting, however, turns out to be something quite unexpected. Battered but not broken, can Frank find the courage to make one more jump?

Genres: M M Romance, Holiday, Christmas, Historical

93 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 6, 2025

About the author

Kim Fielding lives in Oregon and travels as often as she can manage. A professor by day, at night she rushes into a phone booth to change into her author costume (which involves comfy clothes instead of Spandex and is, sadly, lacking a cape). Her superpowers include the ability to write nearly anywhere, often while simultaneously doling out assistance to her family. Her favorite word to describe herself is "eclectic" and she finally got that seventh tattoo.

Reviews

[Kim]

This holiday novella takes us back to 1950s Hollywood. I did a fair bit of research for this one: on animators in the 50s, on WWII paratroopers, and on 1950s Los Angeles. It's a bit of a challenge to write an HEA for these characters in this timeline, but it's absolutely not impossible. Even under the harsh rules of the time, love found a way. I wanted to celebrate that while also acknowledging the bravery that was required for queer couples then... and now.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was enormously satisfying. An illustrator meets the actor who will voice his character, all told from the artist's point of view. Frogs are somewhat involved. Both men served in WWII, the artist has a bum foot for his trouble. The whole thing is just beautifully done.

[Christina]

3.5 Stars

[Aki | nose buried in books | ❤️ | · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
sweet and short novella settled in the 50s, but i wanted a little bit of... more

[Ami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this over my latest holiday trip - and it was sweet. I loved the brief portrayal of animator work. Considering the timeframe, Hollywood in 1950's, the romance happened rather behind the door but it was nonetheless, I believe in Frank Porter and his handsome matinee idol, Carver Reed. I hope they are happy together - with their frogs.

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kim Fielding does her magic again :)

She has this special way with stories (the shortness of which I generally don't like) that they push all my right buttons. The characters and storylinse of her shorts are also so well fleshed out that I usually feel a real connection to the MCs.

And here it happened again. Even though it's only about 90 pages long, I really, really liked Frank and Carver. And the frogs. And the subtle Christmas setting :)

Recommened!

[Kobie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just love this author's work.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

** 4.5 Stars **

It was an absolute joy to read and I wish it was longer!

[Harrison Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unusual and quirky Christmas tale, "Animated" tells the story of animator Frank Porter and actor Carver Reed. Frank is assigned the task of imbuing Carver Reed's mannerisms and likeness into the frog character in a movie that his studio is producing, and from there Frank's world is shaken in more ways than one as Carver makes his interest in Frank known.

In some ways, Frank is as two-dimensional as his drawings, keeping to himself and interacting with the outside world as little as possible. However, Carver's pursuit of him, along with the prodding of some of Frank's friends, push Frank out of his comfort zone enough to start taking chances with friendships and eventually leaping into a relationship with Carver.

It's an interesting time period that Fielding depicts here and the research shows. While it wasn't easy for gay people to meet and form relationships, they did and persevered in the face of social stigmatism. I'm not quite sure I completely bought the relationship between Frank and Carver, or at least the speed of it, but it was still a sweet and moving Christmas story about the tenacity of people's relationships.

[Leslie Zak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute and scary

Frank is a closeted young animator for a film studio making a movie with a famous star using his voice for the lead. When they spend time together so Frank can use every nuance of Carter's personality in the film, they click. It takes time for Frank to actually believe the relationship has a chance in 1950s America. We do get a HEA in this well written period piece. Highly recommended.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the early 50s where Homosexuality was still taboo and carried on in secret.
Frank is an animator who is working on a film with a frog as the main character and he is in charge of drawing him.
The frog is to be voiced by film heartthrob Carver Reed and the studio arranges for Carver to spend some time together so Frank can incorporate some of Carver's features into the frog.
Just the right length for a story.

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet holiday story featuring two men who lived in a time when homosexuality was a crime. One an animator who's working on a full-length film, and the other an actor doing the voice of the MC, they find they have much in common and ultimately end up celebrating the holiday (and more) together.

A nice treat with no extra calories, that's always a win for me. :D

[Sniege · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holliday novella based in 1950s about animator and actor

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sigh. Lovely. Romantic and true to the history.