How do I make friends at 23?

I'm kinda late to a lot of stuff. Driving, dating, being independent, etc. As a result, I've struggled to properly socialize with people and to do it in a way that isn't awkward. I have specific interests (nerdier stuff) but I can never find a good social circle for those and wonder if it's too niche. Not that talking to people outside of those interests is bad at all.

Covid hasnt made this easier on me (I love in Houston for reference) but I've always had trouble. I get lonely sometimes and this really hit hard for me today when I was off from work amd had no one to talk to. So I was running errands and I felt hollow.

Anyways, I wanna try this since I feel as though making friends is something I should do. Bad experiences have put me off but I feel like I can try again. There's less judgement from dating too which is cool.