Thanks for all of your advice.
I don't feel confident enough yet to take on local businesses and charities, but I will ask my friends and family.
I do want to make fictious sites. I have even thought about making Blogger templates. What would help is carrying out projects with a set brief. I have tons of ideas and I can start projects easily. What I need to build on is the confidence and determination to see them through to the end.
I have seen the design competitions on this site, so that might be on my list for this month.
I have heard of Lynda, visited it during a trial period, then avoided it because it is subscription based. If it has advice on project management or fictional briefs then I might give it a go. Regardless, thanks for the recommendation.