Writers- how do you muster the courage to show other people your work?

I’ve been writing since I was six. Back then my work mostly featured rabbits and complaints about church, and I’m optimistic that there’s been some progress since then..

But seriously speaking, my characters are so close to my heart that I’m finding it difficult to tell people about them in case they’re not well received. I can handle constructive criticism, I’m just not sure where to go about getting it.. These days my writing’s pretty fragmented because of my badly managed schedule, but I’d like to start on a real project after my final exams in a couple of months’ time.

So how did you guys start sharing your writing? Have you got any advice for somebody who’s finally ready to start taking her own stuff seriously?