Wali Alam Shaheen is considered "one of the top-ranking modern poets in the Urdu-speaking world," especially known for his "uncommon brilliance and linguistic innovation" (Ariel in Dawn, Karachi, April 12, 1984). He is the author of seven volumes of poetry: Rag-e-Saaz, Baynishaan, Dehleez Per Phool, Khula Darwaaza, Pushtaara, Shabnasheen, and Zar-e-Daagh. Another notable contribution is a book with critical appreciation and English translations of his poems, some previously uncollected, presented in a bilingual text titled Dreams and Destinations: Shaheen and His Poetry, edited with an introduction by Nuzrat Yar Khan.

Literary magazines such as Afkar, Tawaazun, Sabras, Shabkhoon, Esbaat, Naya Safar, Ilm-o-Adab, Aamad, Mafaaheem, Mukalama, Sabaq e Urdu, and Chaharsu have featured his poetry, often accompanied by critical appreciation from eminent critics. His work is included in Prof. Wahab Ashrafi’s Taareekh-e-Adab-e-Urdu (History of Urdu Literature), vol. 3, pp. 1734-37.

In Canada, Shaheen's writings have appeared in Canadian Literature (UBC, Vancouver), The Toronto South Asian Review, Possibilities (Ottawa), Alter Vox, Arc Poetry Magazine, Urdu Canada, and South Asian Ensemble (Trenton), highlighting his significant impact. He is mentioned in The Canadian Encyclopedia (Hurtig, 1988) and the Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada (Edited by William H. New, University of Toronto Press, 2002), and quoted in The Canadian Dictionary of Quotations (Stoddart, 1991), Contact Canada (Oxford University Press, 1996), and Notre Canada (OUP, 1998). His bibliography is included in The Canadian Ethnic and Native Literature (University of Toronto Press, 1990), and his book Baynishaan was included in the Modern Urdu Literature curriculum at Ranchi University.

A Ph.D. degree in Shaheen’s poetry titled "A Critical Study of Shaheen’s Poetry" was awarded to a research scholar at Vinoba Bhave University, Jharkhand, India, in May 2017. Shaheen has been interviewed on radio and television in Pakistan, India, Canada, and the USA, with Voice of America airing his interview in two installments (1998) focusing on his poetry and poetics under the program Adab aur Adeeb. He authored a 5-part “Literary Portrait of Pakistan” for Carleton University Radio CKCU FM 93.1 Third World Players program produced by Lloyd Stanford.

Among his accolades are the Altaf Hussain Hali World Urdu Award at the 1988 World Urdu Conference, New Delhi; the Gahwara-e-Adab Award, 2003, with a citation from the Governor of Sindh, Pakistan; the Uttar Pradesh Hindi-Urdu Sahitya Award 2009; the Indian Cultural Society, New Delhi, 2009 Mir Taqi Mir Award; the National Federation of Pakistani-Canadians (NFPC) Award, 2018, for “truly outstanding and selfless services to our community,” and the CPA Lifetime Achievement Award, 2019.

Shaheen has actively participated in numerous literary events and presented readings and/or papers at international conferences in Mauritius, the U.S.A., Canada, the U.K., and India. He was elected for the fourth time as the 2012-2013 Chair of the Race Issues Committee of The Writers Union of Canada. Details can be found on TWUC’s website www.writersunion.ca.

A statistician by profession, Shaheen held many positions, notably as Lecturer in Statistics at Marwari College, Bhagalpur (1960-64), Assistant Statistician at Pakistan Tea Board (1964-66), Head of the Statistics Division at Adamjee Jute Mills Ltd, Dhaka (1966-71), Assistant Director (R & I) at Monopoly Control Authority, Islamabad (1972-73), and served the Federal Government of Canada for 20 years (1974-94), lastly as Policy & Costing Advisor with Transport Canada in Ottawa. He also volunteered his services at The Writers’ Union of Canada, NCARR, OMA, OCISO, etc. Shaheen's first poetry collection, Rag-e-Saaz (1967), was published under his then pen name “Shaheen Ghazipuri”; he was born in Ghazipur, a village in the Munger district of Bihar, India.