Wanting to infodump

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At the same time I want to be polite and listen to when people talk about their hobbies and passions. But when it's my turn, I go quiet and shy. I don't want to push my interests on others because I know not everyone are interested in the same things. But at the same time I want to tell about sharks and deep sea animals.

I find it hard to not infodump about my interests. I do enjoy listening to other people infodump though, so I've found that having autistic friends is nice since we can kind of mutually infodump about things we like. One of my favourite forms of "conversation" is doing that.

I've found most people are OK with infodumping as long as you aren't forcing them to listen to it nonstop or preventing them from discussing what they want. I tend to give people a heads up that I find it hard to tell if someone else is enjoying the topic and I tend to want to keep going on and on, so they should interrupt me if they need a break. Most people never take that option and seem to enjoy the conversation overall.

That is so cute. I reckon loads of people would love to hear about sharks.

Absolutely. This is why I will find myself, for example, reading a magazine about cars when I personally have no interest in them. The writers sure care about them a lot, and I enjoy their enthusiasm.

I would suggest making a point of looking for people who share your interests. Among people you already know in-person, you can mention your interests briefly and see who, if anyone, shares your enthusiasm. Online, you can post pictures of sharks and deep sea animals, and links to articles about them, on your social media accounts. Here on Wrong Planet and on other message boards, you can edit your profile to mention your interests in a signature line.