How 2018 $20k investment be reported. No earnings as of yet.

[rey-mos]

I'm self employed and retired from government.  where, how would I report my invested money and report a (-) number on the IRS report.  My earning might go to a positive or profitable business soon in 2019.

[Anita01]

It's not clear what kind of investment you made.  There is nothing taxable or reportable about just making an investment.  If you have no form of earnings or realized gains from the investment, there is nothing to report.  Realized means you would have to sell an investment to realize a gain or loss.  A decline in value is not deductible.

If you want to give more specifics about the kind of investment you have, that could help give a better answer