diff --git a/doc/HOWTO-RELEASE b/doc/HOWTO-RELEASE
index 045faad..bf83b55 100644
--- a/doc/HOWTO-RELEASE
+++ b/doc/HOWTO-RELEASE
@@ -29,6 +29,11 @@ Release procedure
 
 - Check CPAN distribution will work via Module::Build:
 
+    - Start from a clean slate:
+
+        make distclean
+        autoreconf -iv
+
     - Generate stow, chkstow, and lib/Stow.pm via:
 
         eval `perl -V:siteprefix`