Lost money on a business start up. How do I deduct this?

If the business never started and you didn't sell the business, then the startup costs aren't deductible.  If the business 'started' but you didn't make any money, you can deduct your expenses like you would report business income and expenses normally. The business just didn't have any income. 

You'll need to enter your work under the 'business' section, to deduct your expenses as self-employed. To do so, you'll need to upgrade to TurboTax Self-Employed, which you can do by going to the business income section, explained below. When you login:

1. Click 'Take me to my tax return'
2. Click the "Federal Taxes" tab and then click "Wages & Income" below, scroll down to "Business Income & Expenses"
3. Next to, "Profit or Loss from Business," click "Start" or "Update"
4. Then, one of the following will happen:

• The software will start asking you questions about your self-employment work or business. Continue answering the questions about this work and you'll be able to enter your business expenses. Choose the categories that best match your expenses in relationship to your work.
  
• If you've already entered a self-employment work or business, then you'll be at a summary screen and need to click 'Add another business'