Your light source / or lens flare, to people who only know pshop buy its filter names... is fine.
Anytime someone says "my eye goes straight to (insert whatever they dont like here) and it's really distracting." is really saying :
"I don't get it". or "I wouldn't do that."
I see that image as you creating a light source, and giving direct reason for the hard highlights on the planet/moon. You could also not use the very high/bright light source to give the impression of a distant sun creating the light.
neither one is a better/worse image.
they are just different.
Did you use the render difference clouds to make those cosmic and planetary elements?? I would.
http://www.quantumpetshop.com/tutorials/elecrings.asp
that might get some people pointed in the right direction.
the text is a little generic.
kind of an atypical "tech" font.
to make your fonts more interesting, you can always try working with the tracking/leading in the character palette.
Sometimes using Serif/Sans fonts that are more classic can lend a more sophisticated look.
good font work is a labor of love and takes at least 1 yr of constant study to really get enough experience and exposure to other fonts/usage of fonts.
conversely you can make your own fonts, or at least the characters for a specific title.
I think your usage of the font in the design is fine. it's not overwhelming or annoying. it fits into the tone of the design nicely.
it's nice to see someone make something from scratch in a forum, especially when everyone else just steals images and then inserts them in their "original designs".