Stepan Petrovich Shchipachev was born in the village of Shchipachi, which is now located in the Bogdanovich urban district of the Sverdlovsk region, into a peasant family. In 1913 and 1917, he worked as a clerk in a bookstore in Kamyshlov. In 1919 and 1921, he served in the Red Army. From 1922 to 1931, he was a teacher at military educational institutions and editor of the magazine "Krasnoarmeyets." In 1930, he became one of the founders of LOKAF. From 1931 to 1934, he was a student at the Institute of the Red Professorship, where he graduated from the literary department. From 1937 to 1941, he worked again in the editorial office.

Shchipachev began his literary activity in 1919, publishing more than 120 collections of his works. His poems often appeared in periodicals. He wrote about love and nature, but gained the most fame for his civil lyrics.

Shchipachev was a member of the board of the Union of Soviet Writers and chairman of the poets' section. He repeatedly represented the Soviet literary community abroad.

In 1960, he actively opposed the ban on the departure abroad of Yevgeny Yevtushenko. He signed a letter from a group of Soviet writers to the newspaper "Pravda" on August 31, 1973, concerning Solzhenitsyn and Sakharov. He is also known for his critical article in "Literaturnaya Gazeta" against Solzhenitsyn, titled "The End of the Literary Vlasovite," published on February 20, 1974, where he accused Solzhenitsyn of slandering the country.

He lived in Moscow: in 1937 and 1948 on Leningradsky Prospekt, building 28; in the early 50s on Gorky Street, building 27/29; from the mid-50s until the end of his life on Lavrushinsky Lane, building 17.

He died on January 1, 1980.