[@Tachi]Also, it will make your life tremendously easier to get some co-GMs to help with the load. There is no reason as to why you should be the only one to carry the burden of such a big game (and stressing). Rp is supposed to be fun. 

Definitely next time though be sure to reduce the maximum allowed characters when you start a game. If you force everyone to have one, then you can see who will join initially, and get all the first characters approved. If you think the game could use more, then just open up second characters and approve those. That way the approval process is controlled. :D

It also controls people's muses at times. Some people just try to max out having 3 characters, get overwhelmed when their characters don't play how they were hoping in game or two of the three aren't working, their muse dies (or they decide to drop those characters and those characters were already connected to another writers' character), and they leave the game (or that writer who was affected by the character drop leaves the game). It sounds crazy, but it happens. A lot.