This essay discusses the evolution of two inter-disciplinary design projects that use the methods of tool-building and fiction writing in their research process. The first project discussed, Spoke, is a game for exploring critical thinking, ideation techniques, and future narratives. Each time it is played it generates new research outcomes as narratives and discussion. Beyond narratives, the second project, LivePrinter, uses tool-making as a form of future thinking and "research as design." With widespread 3D printing and robot manufacturing in use, LivePrinter explores how printing-as-performance challenges our current view of automated production’s strengths and weaknesses.