I always recommend Minilla to new authors and those who don't want to have to think about their authoring tool. As others have covered it is very good at "just doing it" for the 90% case.

Another simple tool I recommend to new authors if they are the type that wants to have more control over the process is mbtiny. This is a bit limited since it can only use Module::Build::Tiny as the installer, but for the cases it works for, it makes the release process very simple and leaves everything else up to you.

If you want full control of the process, have complex needs, or just are very bored, then it may be worth diving into Dist::Zilla. I encourage starting with Dist::Zilla::Starter, and then using @Starter::Git (or @Starter if you are not using git) (shameless plug, I've written all of these). Similarly to mbtiny, it will simplify all of the core processes for you in a modern way, and let you decide how everything else should work via configuration and additional plugins. I also encourage anyone running into trouble with Dist::Zilla to join #distzilla on irc.perl.org where we are happy to help with walking through or debugging any variety of issue.

-Dan