I used to be like this when I was in school. For years I used to avoid social situations. The best advice I can offer is to just force yourself to participate in those situations, the more times you do it, the less uncomfortable it gets!
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.