I don't know about most of the people on this board, but most of the players I know personally have less experience with the Fate system than I have (which, honestly, consisted of skimming SotC and now reading Dresden), some only know of The Dresden Files from the TV series, and many of them stick with certain "crunch" games that are more numbers than storytelling.
Now that the stage is set, I can actually ask the major question: How do you prepare for running this game?
This can be broken down into the following thoughts/questsions:
What are your approaches for teaching new players the various mechanics, from Aspects to Thaumaturgy?
How do you explain such things to a group that is more familiar with number crunching than writing a backstory?
How much thought do you put in a backstory, or expect your players to put into the story of their characters?
Do you have a preferred character creation approach?
As a GM, do you have suggestions for a cheat sheet, whether for the new players or even for yourself?
If you have ever made said cheat sheets, would you care to give an idea as to what is there and how it was done, what inspired it, etc?
Do you have a cap for a set number of players, so as to not go overboard, drag down play, or even keep the system intact?
Personally, I'm fond of cheat sheets, both in the general sense (explaining basic roll mechanics, noting Assessment/Declarations, etc) and the more personalized sense (skills, trappings, stunts, and powers based on the character; standard rolls and notes for a GM Screen). I also am prone to teach on the fly, as not many of my players are willing to slug through a 400 page book for a new game (sad, but true); this leads to an opening scene much akin to a video game tutorial where the players are given less control in terms of story (i.e. railroading), but are given the chances to test just about everything (Assessments/Declarations, a chance to use certain powers/stunts, etc). After that scene, the doors open, almost literally, to the story at hand.
At the moment, I'm still trying to get a party together (whether new RPers or my group of old hats), and as I begin this process, I'm curious what others do and hope that entirely new GMs may find something useful here. Who knows, maybe some of us who are stuck in old habits may see something new ^_^
In any case, happy gaming!
--Crion