Initiation begins a year and one day before the actual ritual. You first become a dedicant; that is, you dedicate yourself to the Old Religion. The ritual is as simple or complex as you wish. Lighting a candle, taking a walk, meditating, all of these are ways to dedicate yourself to the Goddess.
Mark the calendar and spend the next year and one day studying. Learn everything you can whether it is from people or from books. A word of warning about books, there are a lot of them with great information but there are a lot of them that aren't useful at all. Use your judgment or the advice of someone you trust.
You should learn at least one skill from the following categories:
DIVINATION: tarot, scrying, numerology, astrology, etc.
SPIRIT COMMUNICATION: ouija board, aura reading, automatic writing, etc.
HERBCRAFT/WARTCUTTING: aromatherapy, herbal remedies, kitchen magick, etc.
PSYCHIC SKILLS: clairvoyance/audience, telepathy, telekinesis, etc.
CREATIVE SKILLS: art, music, dance, etc.
You will likely learn more than one of these things as one usually drifts into another. Learn something because you want to, stick with it because you love to. If something doesn't interest you after you've studied it for a while move on to something new.
Collect your tools. Feng Shui will tell you not to gather your tools from temples or sacred sites but in my point of view these objects have been charged to their fullest potential. A good spiritual and physical cleansing will most likely be necessary. My favorite and most powerful tools are those given to me by other pagans or people who are earthbound.
Different books will give you a listing of tools that you absolutely have to have when starting out. I personally feel that, if you feel that you don't need any, you don't need any. Otherwise, start with your alter. It doesn't have to be something permanent, just stable. Gather items that represent the four elements. Plants and pottery work well for earth, feathers and incense for air, candles and athame for fire, and shells or cups for water. I also use two candles to represent the Lord and the Lady. I prefer to use tapered candles in simple candlesticks but whatever you want will work.
As your year and a day draw to a close you will need to choose a magickal name. Your name is a personal thing, think long and hard over it. Being drawn to Egypt, I derived my name, Isa, from the Lady Isis. Others have used baby name books, don't laugh, it works. My partner, Adair Ulrich, chose his name for it's meaning: wolf oak. It helped to give him powers he felt he lacked. Adair is far from a wolf, actually more like a lamb, but felt he needed to balance himself a bit.
A period of reflection is standard before any ritual but especially before your initiation. Some Native American tribes had their initiation and their coming of age at the same time so reflection could last for months. In Witta, the period of reflection is three days. These are days of isolation and hardship, just you, a tent, a blanket, and a knife (if your lucky). For today, a 24-hour period of reflection will do. Spend the time thinking about what you are feeling. Are you sure this is what you want? Is your heart light or heavy? It is normal to feel nervous, but are you scared? Do you enter the circle with fear in your heart?
When your year and a day have passed, you are ready to be initiated. If you are a member of a group, they will be doing the initiating. What happens is never spoken of outside the group. It is usually a show of trust but if they ask you to do things you are not comfortable with you have every right to leave or decline the ritual.
Should you be a solitary, like most of us are, you will only need to do a simple self-initiation. The basis of the initiation is to be "reborn" so to speak. You have gone through a change and now you are burying the old you, and wiccaning the new. The most important parts of the initiation ritual are: 1) asking the Lord and Lady for their love and guidance and 2) giving them your new name. You are now a daughter/son of the Lord and Lady.
