If Writers Were Plants, I would be Kudzu

I don't know why I should find myself wondering why I have so much to learn after one published novel. After all, after my first murder trial, I still had a lot to learn. I never stopped learning as a lawyer.
Don't get me wrong, I would never have consented to the publication of something I wasn't proud of.
But what I am learning is that I write very inefficiently. I like big. I like complicated.
Too big, too complicated. (Even at 500 pages, Judging Angels is much less big and complicated than originally conceived and executed, but apparently works.) If I've learned one thing, it's don't make things harder on yourself than necessary as a writer. It's tough enough as it is.
If writers were plants, I would be kudzu.
So, I'm splitting the too-long sequel into two novels, each with slightly overlapping story lines, and each focusing on one setting. The whole parallel plots between two vastly different settings is too complex to make work, I have realized. Who knows? Maybe someone could make it work?
Someone with more experience, maybe.
So, I'm making progress, working from back-to-front. (Deciding on an ending first and working toward hooking it up with previously written material I can still use.)
And, I hope, the third book will be well on its way toward completion.