I forgot to reply to my own shit last time and I can't be fucked to do it this time, and I also didn't say Step three, but you're smart enough to tell who the only contributing member of /tg/ is right now, and this thread is like three people wide anyways.
Make a goddamn homebrew thing, man. 'Rule of Cool' it up, nigga! Make a race or something. Find something you've always wanted to do when you play and make it happen! You wanna lead a horde of dragons against an unimaginable threat? You wanna establish a civilization in the middle of fucking nowhere and turn it into the next Mecca? You wanna start or end a civil war? How about giving everyone a little unique trinket that might actually become useful?
Don't start at level one, man. Everyone has done that shit, and everyone's tired of it. Start at two or three, when players can actually begin to make a character unique. They have options to at least begin down their path to a memorable character, instead of sneaky stabby bastard #341.
When it comes down to it, your crew wants to have fun, so make a story you'll have fun telling, and make them instrumental in it.