I've found that diving into a project and figuring out what needs to be done is the best way to get going specially if the project has zero chance of causing damage. Writing a text editor seems live a doable even if you decide to write it in assembler. You need to pick a project, break it down to pieces you can handle and go for it. Your job is to pick a task and decide and learn how to accomplish it. Keep in mind that you need to finish so add a deadline and be consistent. Do not fall into the trap that you can take forever to finish. If you do that,you will fail. Pick a project, copy it if you need to, and start. Keep it simple and add complexity as you move forward. So start and pick a deadline today. Stop thinking about it.