We've been feeling the home page was getting a little staid, so we've decided to convert it to more of a blog format. The idea is to include a few round-ups of activity on the site, as well as throughout the writing world. Any feedback very welcome!

I wonder whether an unintended opposite effect might be being achieved here. These days almost everything seems to be going blog style, so there's a danger of losing the site's distinctiveness. One blog looks very much like another.

Whether I'm right or wrong about that, I found the disappearance of easy navigation via buttons to other sections rather annoying, particularly the one to the forums which is probably where most members head for on logging in. Now, there is just a link tucked inside some text. From a promotional point of view, the old right-hand column with the buttons, etc., gave the visitor a much more immediate view of the variety of attractions available in the site than a chunk of text does - especially as it's essentially promotional copy.

There's also the danger that, if the content of the particular blog posting showing on the day doesn't appeal to the visitor, he/she will assume that that content represents what the site is about and will move on without exploring the bigger picture.

Or am I just being resistant to change?

Great feedback, thanks Chris - actually I'd been intending to keep the right hand links, I'd updated an old template - they are back in now, along with the new blog.
Thanks again