The writer was born in the Kelmė district, in the village of Jucių, he graduated from Kelmė 1st secondary school, and while still a schoolboy, he began to publish his first creative attempts. 1956-1961 studied Lithuanian studies at Vilnius University.
After graduating, he worked at the Klaipėda fishing base, in the editorial offices of "Jaunimo gretų", "Literatūros ir meno", "Švyturios", "Pergalė", "Metų" (from 1991 to 1997). This work created the conditions for V. Šimkas to become an editor of poetry and poetry translations, around whom everyone who knows this specific talent of his gathered.
